JP4930273B2 - Panel folder - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a panel folder.

  Various electronic control units are mounted on electronic devices such as car audio and acoustic systems, and electronic devices with electrical decorations on the control units have been developed in order to enhance the visual impression. For example, in order to give an electric decoration to the operation unit, a technique is known in which a plate-shaped light guide plate is arranged on the back side of the operation unit to make the periphery of the operation unit shine (see, for example, Patent Document 1). However, this technology increases the size of the device by the thickness of the light guide plate, and in recent years, a panel folder that surrounds and holds the periphery of each operation unit is formed of a transparent member. A light source has been developed that can illuminate while omitting the light guide plate by irradiating light from the light source forward through the light source.

Specifically, FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a panel folder mounted on a conventional electronic device. As shown in FIG. 9, the panel folder 100 is provided with an insertion hole 101 through which an operation unit (not shown) is inserted, and a recess 102 formed around the insertion hole 101 for storing a light source (not shown). It has been. The concave portion 102 is formed in a V shape, and light from the light source is irradiated forward by the inclined surface and the corner portion. As shown in FIG. 10, a milky white daylighting plate 103 is disposed in front of the panel folder 100 in order to uniformly emit irradiated light around the operation unit.
JP-A-4-328702

  However, since it is necessary to reduce the cost of the electronic device itself, it is desired to emit light for electric decoration uniformly while reducing the daylighting plate. In particular, in recent years, in order to obtain higher designability, it has been considered to form various patterns with unevenness around the operation unit, but since the lighting plate is thin, depending on the case, desired unevenness may be formed. It was a difficult situation. Although it is conceivable to use a thick daylighting plate, the light becomes blurred as the thickness increases, and this is not suitable when clear light is required in the design.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a panel folder in which light for electric decoration is uniformly emitted while omitting a daylighting plate, thereby reducing costs and easily forming desired unevenness.

The panel folder according to the invention of claim 1 is:
A plate-like main body made of a light-transmitting resin;
An insertion hole formed in the main body and into which the operation part is inserted so that the operation part is exposed toward the front side;
Provided around the insertion hole in the main body part so as to surround the operation part inserted into the insertion hole, integrally projecting toward the front side, and a decorative unevenness is formed on the tip surface thereof A protruding portion,
In order to accommodate the light source on the back surface side of the main body portion, a plurality of substantially V-shaped portions are formed around the insertion hole on the back surface of the main body portion so that the extending direction extends along the radial direction of the insertion hole. A light source groove,
A plurality of light source grooves formed so as to be continuous between the plurality of light source groove portions around the insertion hole on the back surface of the main body portion in order to guide light emitted from the light source in the light source groove portion to the front side; And a substantially V-shaped light guide groove.

The invention according to claim 2 is the panel folder according to claim 1,
The light guide groove is formed such that its extending direction is along the radial direction of the insertion hole.

The invention according to claim 3 is the panel folder according to claim 2,
The area of the inclined surface of the light source groove is set wider than the area of the inclined surface of the light guiding groove.

The inventor forms a plurality of light guide groove portions continuously between a plurality of light source groove portions for accommodating a light source on the back side of the main body portion, and the light source groove portions and the light guide groove portions are substantially V-shaped. It was found that the light from the light source is uniformly guided to the front side of the main body by forming the light source. As a result, even if the lighting plate is omitted, it is possible to make the light visible from the front side uniform. If the daylighting plate can be omitted, the number of parts can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.
And like this invention, since a main-body part and the protrusion part integral with the said main-body part can be formed even if it is resin with translucency higher than a lighting board, a protrusion part is compared with the conventional lighting board. Even if it is formed thick, blurring of light can be suppressed. If the thickness can be secured, the degree of freedom of the unevenness for decoration will increase. By these, manufacturing cost is suppressed and it becomes possible to implement | achieve the panel folder which is easy to form a desired unevenness | corrugation.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a car audio as an example of an electronic apparatus. As shown in FIG. 1, the car audio 1 includes a front cover 2, various operation units 3 exposed from the front cover 2, a display unit 4 on which various information is displayed, and a CD or DVD. An outlet 5 and an external input terminal 34 are provided. The operation unit 3 is provided with a cylindrical volume key 31, a rectangular reproduction key 32, a preset key 33, and the like. In addition, the car audio 1 incorporates a panel folder 6 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) that surrounds and holds each operation unit 3 and the periphery of the external input terminal 34.

  The panel folder 6 according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of the panel folder 6, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view seen from the back side. In the following description, the configuration of the panel folder 6 around the volume key 31 as the operation unit 3 will be described.

  The panel folder 6 has a plate-like main body 61 made of a translucent resin, and an insertion hole formed in the main body 61 for inserting the volume key 31 so that the volume key 31 is exposed toward the front side. 62 and a protrusion 63 that integrally protrudes from the periphery of the insertion hole 62 in the main body 61 toward the front side so as to surround the periphery of the volume key 31 inserted into the insertion hole 62.

  The insertion hole 62 is formed in a cylindrical shape having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer periphery of the volume key 31 so that the volume key 31 is inserted.

  The protruding portion 63 protrudes from the main body portion 61 toward the front side so as to have a substantially trapezoidal shape in a side view, and a decorative unevenness 64 is formed on the front end surface. The decorative irregularities 64 are arranged such that the front end portion is on the back side with respect to the front end portion of the volume key 31. The decorative irregularities 64 are formed by a plurality of V-shaped grooves 65 formed over the entire circumference of the protrusion 63. The plurality of V-shaped grooves 65 are arranged such that the extending direction thereof is along the radial direction of the protruding portion 63.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the light source 66 (see FIG. 6) is accommodated around the insertion hole 62 in the main body 61 along the radial direction of the insertion hole 62. A plurality of substantially V-shaped light source grooves 67 and a plurality of light source grooves 67 formed so as to be continuous between the plurality of light source grooves 67 in order to guide the light emitted from the light source 66 in the light source groove 67 to the front side. A substantially V-shaped light guide groove 68 is formed.

  The light source groove portion 67 and the light guide groove portion 68 are formed so that the extending direction thereof is along the radial direction of the insertion hole 62. 4 is an explanatory view showing a schematic shape of the light source groove 67, FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a schematic shape of the light guide groove 68, (a) is a top view, and (b) is a side view. is there. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the light source groove 67 and the light guide groove 68 have corners 67a and 68a formed in an arc shape, respectively. Here, assuming that the depth of the light source groove 67 is H1, the width is W1, and the angle of the slope S1 is α1, the depth of the light guide groove 68 is H2, the width is W2, and the angle of the slope S2 is α2, each of these values. Is set such that the area of the slope S1 of the light source groove 67 is larger than the area of the slope S2 of the light guide groove 68. In addition, the extending direction mentioned above is the length direction of the depths H1 and H2. The light source groove 67 is also set based on the size of the light source 66 so that the light source 66 can be accommodated. For example, in the present embodiment, the angle α1 is set to 45 degrees, the angle α2 is set to 60 degrees, and each value is set in a range that satisfies the relationship of depth H1> depth H2 and width W1> W2.

  FIG. 6 is a front view showing the positional relationship between the light source groove 67 and the light guide groove 68. As shown in FIG. 4, the light source groove 67 has a vertex position P1, a 90-degree position P2, a 120-degree position P3, and a 240-degree position when the vertex position P1 is set to 0 degrees from the center T of the insertion hole 62. P4 is arranged at a position 270 degrees P5. In the present embodiment, the light source 66 is installed in the three light source groove portions 67 at the vertex position P1, the 120-degree position P3, and the 240-degree position P4, but the 90-degree position P2 and the 270-degree position. It is also possible to install in the two light source grooves 67 at P5.

  On the other hand, the light source groove 67 is located between the vertex position P1 and 90 ° position P2, between 90 ° position P2 and 120 ° position P3, between 120 ° position P3 and 240 ° position P4, and at 240 ° position P4. To 270 degrees position P5.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
When light is emitted from the light source 66, the light is reflected by the slope S1 of the light source groove 67 and is transmitted through the slope S1. The light reflected by the slope S1 is irradiated forward. On the other hand, the light transmitted through the slope S1 enters the protrusion 63 while being refracted by the slope S1, and reaches the adjacent light guide groove 68. Also in the light guide groove 68, the light is reflected by the slope S2 and transmitted through the slope S2. The light reflected by the slope S <b> 2 further passes through the protrusion 63 and is guided to the adjacent light source groove 67 and the light source groove 67. The light transmitted through the slope S2 is radiated to the outside from the protrusion 63 while being refracted by the slope S2, and is irradiated forward as it is, or passes through the slope S2 again and enters the protrusion 63. . Since this is repeated in each light source groove 67 and each light guide groove 68 when the light source 66 emits light, the periphery of the volume key 31 is uniformly emitted.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, a plurality of light guide groove portions 68 are continuously formed between the plurality of light source groove portions 67 that accommodate the light source 66 on the back surface side of the main body portion 61, and further for the light source. Since the groove portion 67 and the light guide groove portion 68 are formed in a substantially V shape, the light from the light source 66 is uniformly guided to the front side of the main body portion 61. As a result, even if the lighting plate is omitted, it is possible to make the light visible from the front side uniform. If the daylighting plate can be omitted, the number of parts can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.
And since the main-body part 61 and the protrusion part 63 integral with the said main-body part 61 can be formed even if it is resin with translucency higher than a lighting board, the protrusion part 63 is thicker than the conventional lighting board. Even if formed, blurring of light can be suppressed. If the thickness can be secured, the degree of freedom of the decorative irregularities 64 can be increased. By these, manufacturing cost is suppressed and it becomes possible to implement | achieve the panel folder which is easy to form a desired unevenness | corrugation.

  In addition, since the light guide groove 68 is formed along the radial direction of the insertion hole 62, light can be efficiently transmitted in the circumferential direction of the insertion hole 62.

  Since the area of the slope S1 of the light source groove 67 is set to be larger than the area of the slope S2 of the light guide groove 68, light can be transmitted farther and uniformity can be improved. It becomes.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment and can be modified as appropriate.
For example, in the present embodiment, the case where the corner portions 67a and 68a of the light source groove portion 67 and the light guide groove portion 68 are formed in an arc shape has been described as an example, but like the corner portions 67b and 68b in FIG. It may be formed in an acute angle shape.
Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case where the slopes S1 and S2 of the light source groove portion 67 and the light guide groove portion 68 are planes has been described as an example. However, the slopes S1 and S2 are uneven, S1 and S2 may be curved.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the protrusion 63, the light source groove 67, and the light guide groove 68 are formed on the volume key 31 as the operation unit 3 has been described as an example. The protrusion 63, the light source groove 67, and the light guide groove 68 can also be formed on the portion 3. At this time, even if the other operation unit 3 is not a cylindrical shape like the volume key 31 but has a rectangular shape, for example, the protruding portion 63, the light source groove portion 67, and the light guide groove portion 68 can be applied. .

  In the present embodiment, the case where the light source groove 67 and the light guide groove 68 are arranged on the same circumference has been described as an example, but the light source groove 67 and the light guide groove 68 are the same circle. It may be arranged other than on the circumference. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the light source groove 67 </ b> A is arranged on the outer circumference of the circumference where the light guide groove 68 </ b> A is arranged.

It is a front view which shows schematic structure of the car audio as an example of the electronic device which concerns on this embodiment. It is a side view which shows schematic structure of the panel folder which concerns on this embodiment. It is the perspective view which looked at the panel folder of FIG. 2 from the back surface side. It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic shape of the groove part for light sources with which the panel folder of this embodiment is equipped, (a) is a top view, (b) is a side view. It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic shape of the groove part for light guide with which the panel folder of this embodiment is provided, (a) is a top view, (b) is a side view. It is a front view which shows the arrangement | positioning relationship between the groove part for light sources of FIG. 4, and the groove part for light guides of FIG. It is a side view which shows the modification of the groove part for light sources which concerns on this embodiment, and the groove part for light guide. It is a front view which shows the other arrangement | positioning relationship of the groove part for light sources which concerns on this embodiment, and the groove part for light guide. It is the perspective view which looked at the conventional panel folder from the back side. It is a side view which shows the relationship between the conventional panel folder and a lighting board.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Car audio 2 Front cover 3 Operation part 4 Display part 5 Entrance / exit 6 Panel folder 61 Main body part 62 Insertion hole 63 Projection part 64 Concavity and convexity 66 Light source 67 Light source groove part 68 Light guide groove part S1 Slope of light source groove part S2 Guide Slope of groove for light

Claims (3)

A plate-like main body made of a light-transmitting resin;
An insertion hole formed in the main body and into which the operation part is inserted so that the operation part is exposed toward the front side;
Provided around the insertion hole in the main body part so as to surround the operation part inserted into the insertion hole, integrally projecting toward the front side, and a decorative unevenness is formed on the tip surface thereof A protruding portion,
In order to accommodate the light source on the back surface side of the main body portion, a plurality of substantially V-shaped portions are formed around the insertion hole on the back surface of the main body portion so that the extending direction extends along the radial direction of the insertion hole. A light source groove,
A plurality of light source grooves formed so as to be continuous between the plurality of light source groove portions around the insertion hole on the back surface of the main body portion in order to guide light emitted from the light source in the light source groove portion to the front side; A panel folder comprising a substantially V-shaped light guide groove. In the panel folder of claim 1,
The panel folder according to claim 1, wherein the light guide groove is formed such that an extending direction thereof is along a radial direction of the insertion hole. In the panel folder according to claim 2,
The area of the slope of the light source groove is set to be larger than the area of the slope of the light guide groove.

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